MH 1331 Introduction to Medical Humanities Introduction to the interdisciplinary and wide-ranging field of medical humanities, its subjects and scope, and the way in which it can expand and enrich the experiences of patients and practitioners.
MH 2301 Christian Spirituality and Healthcare An historical framework for Western spiritual traditions, especially the Christian tradition, stressing the relationship between Christian spirituality and healing.
PHI 1309 Introduction to Medical Ethics OR REL 4395 Bioethics
PHI 1309 Introduction to Medical Ethics-Introduction to philosophical reasoning regarding medical ethics, including confidentiality, intervention in the beginning and ending of human life, and just distribution of medical resources.
REL 4395 Bioethics-Ethical issues in the fields of health care and other life sciences. Some of the issues studied include behavior modification, abortion, euthanasia, health care delivery, human experimentation, and genetic modification. A major research project on a selected issue approved by the professor will be required of each student.
Philosophical Perspectives
PHI 3301 Moral Philosophy A critical study of problems in moral judgment and evaluation, with analysis of presuppositions and justifications used in moral discourse. Problems such as freedom and determinism, relativism and absolutism, conflicts of duties and ends, grounds of moral obligation, and choices involving personal and social goals are also studied. This course will introduce students to a number of major primary sources in the history of moral philosophy.
PHI 4310 Philosophy of Science An analysis of philosophical problems about science. Such central concepts as law, causation, induction, hypothesis, theory, verification, and models are studied. Presuppositions and methodologies of different sciences may be examined. The relation of scientific views to moral, social, and metaphysical problems is considered.
PHI 4325 Literary & Philosophical Perspectives on Medicine Examination of literature dealing with illness, disease, pain, and death in order to understand better how societal perceptions and values of the care-giver affect the patient.
PHI 4363 Philosophy and Medicine Philosophical approaches to clinical medicine and contemporary health care, focusing on experience as a basis for knowledge.
Religion & Spirituality
MH 3342 Medicine, Missions, and Gospel An overview of the biblical mandate to meet physical and spiritual needs in the context of Christian health care missions.
MH/HED 4305 Theology of Suffering and Healing for Healthcare Professionals A study of the biblical meanings and purposes of suffering with theological reflections and application to those served by health care professionals with consideration to disability-related ministries.
MH 4361 Meaning, Money, and Medicine How personal finance concepts relate to a career in health care against the backdrop of Christian spirituality and values. The course connects "vocational calling" to personal character and discusses spending, debt, giving, paying taxes, and investing.
REL 3345 World Religions Historical, aesthetic, philosophical, anthropological, sociological, and psychological approaches to the major faith traditions of our world.
REL 3390 Christian Ethics Introduction to Christian Ethics through texts from Christian thinkers. By examining primary sources and varied approaches to Christian ethical reflection, students develop critical assessments of contemporary moral issues including family life, economic systems, and violence and war.
REL 4395 Bioethics Ethical issues in the fields of health care and other life sciences. Some of the issues studied include behavior modification, abortion, euthanasia, health care delivery, human experimentation, and genetic modification. A major research project on a selected issue approved by the professor will be required of each student.
Literature and the Arts
MH 3300 Visual Arts and Healing An overview of the connections between visual art, healing and healthcare, the role of imagination and creativity in medicine, including the critical viewing of art, class discussions, experiential learning, and a service-learning project.
MH 4319 Writing About Sickness and Health Explores multiple themes of the human experience in healthcare through reading, discussion, and writing in response to selected poems, short stories, essays, and creative nonfiction. Themes include social disparities, mortality, mental illness, and the patient’s lived experience with illness.
CW 3302 Poetry of Illness and Imagination Focuses on contemporary poetry of illness, healing, imagination, and mortality. Emphasis on connection between creative writing and medical humanities.
ENGL 4334 Literature, Medicine and Public Health Explores literature dealing with issues of disease, illness, and disability; the individuals tasked with treating it; and the people who experience it.
ENGL 4341 Publishing the Literary Magazine Examines the entire process of creating and distributing a national literary magazine, including aspects like soliciting submissions, editorial decision-making, design layout, marketing strategies, and legal considerations, all while focusing on the specific nuances of publishing creative writing like poetry, short fiction, and essays. Engages with the larger creative writing and publishing community by soliciting work from writers across the nation and even the globe.
GTX 3343 Great Texts in the Origins of Science An historical overview of the significant developments in the science of the ancient and medieval periods. Students will read selections from Euclid, Archimedes, Pythagorus, Copernicus, Galileo, and others.
GTX 3370 Great Texts in Medicine Examines classic works in the history of medicine (Hippocrates, Galen, Vesalius, Hildegard von Bingen, and others) as well as important philosophical and literary investigations into the nature of illness and the work of the healing arts (Camus, Woolf, Tolstoy, Solzhenitsyn, Lahiri, and others).
GTX 4341 Great Texts in Modern Science A historical overview of the history and development of the natural and social sciences from the Enlightenment to the present. Students will concentrate on the great texts of science from Bacon, Vico, Newton, Lavoisier, Darwin, Einstein, Heisenberg, Kuhn, and others.
Historical Perspectives
MH/HIS 4300 History of Medicine A review of the origins and development of medicine and medical science from pre-historic times to be present. Consideration will be given to the impact of major diseases on civilization and the emergence of successful measures of control.
MH 4303 History of Women in Medicine This course introduces the historical contributions and challenges of women in medicine and the U.S. health care system. Special emphasis is given to societal expectations and norms and how those evolved to reflect different understanding of gender roles in medicine. This is accomplished through exposure to key figure biographies, literature, and recent peer-reviewed literature highlighting the historical influence of women in medicine, as well as contemporary gender issues in clinical practice.
CLA 4300 Medicine and Healing in the Ancient World Survey of the theory, practice, and literature of western scientific medicine from Hippocrates and the Greeks through the Roman period.
HIS 3321 History of Global Epidemics An in-depth exploration of the history of pandemics and their political, economic, cultural, and scientific impacts from the early modern period to the present, with a global perspective.
Behavioral Health
NSC/PSY 4312 Behavioral Medicine Major issues in Behavioral Medicine from the contribution of psychological, behavioral, and physiological factors and processes, to health and illness, to the application of psychological theories and techniques, to the prevention and amelioration of illness and the promotion of health. Uses engaged learning methods.
PSY 3321 Abnormal Psychology An introduction to historical and modern views of abnormal behavior and a survey of the field of psychological disorders.
PSY 3341 Survey of Human Development A survey of the field of developmental psychology. Consideration is given to the development of human behavior from conception to death.
PSY 3355 Drugs and Behavior A study of the major drugs used to modify mood and behavior; examination of tolerance, dependence, addiction, and treatment. Substances studied include alcohol, anti-psychotic medications, sedatives, stimulants, analgesics, hallucinogens, and other psychoactive substances.
PSY 3399 Positive Psychology and Well-Being Positive psychology theory, research, and interventions.
PSY 4355 Psychology and Aging Normal and abnormal changes in behavior that occur between early maturity and later maturity, with emphasis on changes in sensation and perception, intelligence, learning, and personality, as well as other areas of a more social psychological nature such as social roles and the impact of environmental changes on older people.
Social Sciences & Health
MH 4372 End of Life Care and Bereavement This course critically analyzes how healthcare professionals are involved in the dying experience with patients, families, and communities. Topics include causes of death, trauma, spirituality in grief, complicated bereavement, hospice and palliative care, physician-assisted dying, futile treatment at the end of life, and cross-cultural sensitivities.
MH 4382 U.S. Health Care System An introduction to the current state of health care in the United States including function, economic impacts, payment systems, ideas for reform, and issues related to patient safety and quality measures.
MH 4391 Disrupting Disparities in Healthcare Overview of health disparities in the United States from different disciplinary perspectives, to examine causes and consequences and to explore solutions and strategies that will make us all effective as advocates for justice and equity in healthcare. Students are connected with a local partner to participate in a community service initiative.
MH 4396 Disability and Society Critical reflections on questions of humanity, human well-being, understandings of disability, suffering, and care of those with disabilities, with emphasis on cultural, religious, medical and social perspectives.
SOC 3372 Population Health Analysis and evaluation of socioeconomic status, gender, race, ethnicity, and age as major determinants of individual differences in health and well-being in the United States.
SOC 4353 Sociology of Medicine A sociological examination of health, illness, and the social organization of medical care in the United States. Consideration is given to race, class, gender, and age as factors influencing health, illness, and the delivery of medical care.
Additional Choices for Medical Humanities Electives
MH 4351 Supervised Clinical Medicine Supervised weekly clinical service through various medical fields complemented by weekly seminar sessions.
MH 4377 Supervised Hospice Care Hands-on hospice experience including shadowing hospice professionals. Must meet hospice employment criteria.
MH 4V98 Special Topics in Medical Humanities Advanced studies in special topics involving the Medical Humanities. In some cases, students will be expected to complete research or a special project (1-3 semester hours, may be repeated up to six semester hours total if topics are different).
ANT 1325 Introduction to Global Health An introduction to global health and illness from a cross-cultural and cross-border perspective.
ANT 4325 Medical Anthropology Biological and sociocultural aspects of human health, disease, development, aging, and health care. Especially emphasized are the developmental, holistic, and cross-cultural perspectives on disease and the life cycle.
CLA 3381 Medical Terminology Study of the medical vocabulary of English, based upon Greek and Latin prefixes, stems, and suffixes.
EDP 2336 The Developing Child A study of the physical, cognitive and affective development of a child from prenatal to eighteen years of age. Emphasis is placed on current literature, research findings and developmental theories.
EDP 3361 Developmental Disabilities In this course a review of normal human development provides the basis for an in-depth study of the etiology, characteristics, treatment, and prevention of developmental disabilities including autism, cerebral palsy, learning disabilities, intellectual disabilities, and seizure disorders.
ENV 3314 Introduction to Environmental Health Study of environmental hazards to the health of humans and other vertebrates, including pollution, radiation, wastes, urbanization, and climate change. Topics include epidemiology, risk assessment, infectious diseases, emerging contaminants, and regulation.
ENV 4325 Human Health Risk Assessment Concepts, data sources, and methodologies used in the field of human risk assessment, including environmental hazard identification, dose-response assessment, exposure assessment, risk characterization, and risk communication. Required project utilizing professional risk assessment software.
PUBH 3325 Maternal and Infant Health The purpose of this course is to provide students contextual insight into multilevel influences that shape current maternal and infant health outcomes. Students will improve their understanding of the historical basis for contemporary global and domestic approaches to prenatal care, childbirth, postpartum practices, as well as public policy.
PUBH 4321 Human Sexuality This course examines the topic of human sexuality from a scientific, psychological, and sociological perspective in order to support thinking critically about the contexts that shape sexuality. The curriculum includes potentially sensitive and mature topics, such as reproductive anatomy, sexual health, relationship dynamics, sexual identity, sexual behavior, and various social and ethical issues related to human sexuality. The course is designed to be evidence-based and scientific in nature.
PUBH 4331 Cultural Perspectives in Intervention Design Focuses on building students’ skills in studying cultures and applying that knowledge to public health practice. Students learn how to assess cultural beliefs, values, and social contexts, and use these insights to adapt and design interventions that are culturally appropriate, responsive to community needs, and more likely to be effective across diverse populations.
PUBH 4340 Global Health Overviews global health issues and the role of health education and public health worldwide.
SPA 2321 Intermediate Spanish for Health Professions Development of intermediate level skills in comprehension, speaking, reading, writing, and cultural interpretation with an emphasis on medical and scientific issues for prospective medical and health-care professionals.
SPA 4321 Advanced Spanish for Health Professions In-depth experience with Spanish in medical contexts, including a community service-learning component, with emphasis on oral and aural proficiency.
SWO 4395 Aging and Mental Health Mental health needs and related problems of aging individuals with considerable discussion of approved mental health treatments for such persons.
